Casey Sheehan's Father Finds Meaning Amid Grief [View All]

Mary Sanchez

June 24 2007

Poetry and lore speak of a mother's grief, a mother's tears for a deceased child. So perhaps the spotlight after her soldier-son's death in 2004 was bound to be captured by Cindy Sheehan.

For Pat Sheehan, the very private role of simply continuing to be Casey's father has been enough - until recently, that is. In a blip of publicity, Cindy Sheehan bowed out of her diminishing limelight, announcing that she would stop her activism against the Iraq war. In doing so, she declared that Casey Sheehan "did indeed die for nothing."

That statement ended Pat Sheehan's silence.

He called me after reading a column in which I disputed his ex-wife's assertion. Yes, he told me, Casey Sheehan's death mattered. We continued talking and e-mailing, and he made me realize what should have been so obvious - that a soldier's life is what is significant, not merely his death, or the activism it might inspire.

Pat Sheehan is pained that people know so little about the religious devotion of his son. Casey Sheehan so loved his Catholic faith that he considered the priesthood, before realizing how much he wanted to be a father himself. As a child, he would pull a nightstand from against the wall, cover it with a blanket and "play" Mass, enlisting his sister to be a nun.


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